A day at Borobodur and Vulcan Merapi

People i met here, who contributed to and improved my trip: Juliana (Russia), Markus (Finland), Hannes (Sweden)

A trip to Borobodur will surely be on anyones itinary for a trip to Java and understandably so. The Buddhist Temple was built in the 9th century AD and contains 1500 narrative panels, over 400 Buddha images and dozens of latticed stupas, with the most impressive concentration on the very top. The location is also spectacular with mountains climbing in the distance and volcanoes not far away.

To make the 42km venture from Yogyakarta the four of us hired motorbikes and this meant that we would require all of our driving skills to get there in one piece. Although the Indonesians drive on the left (which is common for a Brit), they dont seem to have many other road rules.

Basically, big gives way to small, undertaking is expected, a horn is necessary and always expect pot holes on any stretch of asphalt! After a few wrong turns and nearly running into the back of a truck, we eventually arrived after nearly 2 hours, with the scorching sun helping to drain what little energy we hadn't exerted on the journey :)

We spent a couple of hours wandering around the different levels, inspecting the carvings and just appreciating the fine architecture. Unlike other temples i have visited, Borobodur stands out due to its fantastic stupas, many of which contain a hidden Buddha image. Sadly a lot of the Temple has suffered damage over the years with many Buddhas now headless and several of the stupas smashed. It is nevertheless an interesting site and is evidence of the Buddhist domination of Java.

The four of us had some mie goreng ayam (fried noodles with chicken), a real Indonesian favourite, before hopping back on to the bikes to visit 2 nearby temples. First stop was at Pawon Temple, followed by the more impressive Mendut Temple. Here there was also a modern place of worship, containing stupas, a carved elephant and a lotus pond. As time was passing us by, we decided to leave Prambanan for the following day and instead drove off into the countryside in search of Vulcan Merapi.

Now you might find it strange that one should have to 'search' for a 3000m high volcano that has caused countless deaths over the years, but as the day had drawn onwards, the clouds had also begun to roll in around the mountains. As we passed along the countrysides scenic roads, we stopped to ask directions on several occasions and whilst doing this got to see some interesting locals picking chilis and rice.

When we eventually reached the 'viewing point' all we could see was mist and mixed with the altitude, it had become really cold. Hannes therefore decided he needed a coat and bought one from a local lady who had come to see what we were doing. Normally you would think that $3.50 is not bad for a coat, but this thing was falling to pieces and in Indonesia you could buy a brand new one like it for probably $3! At least he seemed happy to parade his new purchase whilst we shivered away in our t-shirts.

Just as we had started our engines and were about to begin our descents, the weather all of a sudden began to improve. The mist lifted slowly but surely and within 20 minutes Merapi all of a sudden became visible. It was a real stroke of luck and one that we were really grateful for.

We remained for 20 minutes as Javas largest and most dangerous volcano disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. Rejuvinated, we hopped back on our bikes and began our journey back to Yogya. It took us nearly 2 hours again, much of which was in the dark. We were pleased to arrive back safely after a really great day out.

Julia and I went and had some Dinner in the little cafe we had grown so fond of and followed it up with a beer in the Banana Bar, where a really cool band came and played a couple of songs. We continued on to the Bintang Bar where another live band were on display playing some funky music before eventually crawling home around 2.30am.